Charles Robinson Talks Getting Collapsed Lung After Randy Savage Match, Vince McMahon, More
On episode 233 of Talk Is Jericho, 'The Man Of 1,004 Holds' Chris Jericho spoke with longtime WWE referee Charles Robinson. Robinson talked about being glad Vince McMahon does not instruct him over his earpiece, getting injured during his 'Lil Naitch' run in WCW, his favorite matches that he officiated, and who he likes to work with today.
When asked whether McMahon ever gives instructions over his earpiece, Robinson said that he is glad that WWE's Chairman does not. Although Robinson is a veteran official, he admitted that he still gets nervous from time to time.
"Thank God, no. People used to think that's my hearing aid, but it's not, guys!" Robinson acknowledged, "there are times that I still get a little scared, like when I go out there for WrestleMania. That's very nerve-racking. You have 70 [or] 80,000 people [and] this year, you have more than 100,000 people watching what you do, so that's something hard to overcome, but that's part of being a pro."
During Robinson's 'Lil Naitch' run, he suffered a collapsed lung from receiving one of 'Macho Man' Randy Savage's elbow drops. While Savage was apologetic about the accident, Robinson would be in the shelf for two weeks recovering from that injury.
"In Cedar Rapids, Iowa, I believe it was, Flair and I teamed up [and] took on Savage and Medusa." Robinson added, "we had a tag match and it finished with the elbow drop onto me, Savage elbow drop, which I didn't know how to position myself, whether to hold my chest or breathe. I just laid there and took it. And he landed in on me and put me in the hospital for two weeks. Yeah, collapsed lung."
As for Robinson's favorite matches that he refereed, he named three WrestleMania classics: Flair vs. Shawn Michaels at WrestleMania 24; The Undertaker vs. Michaels from WrestleMania 26; and, Jericho vs. Michaels at WrestleMania 19.
"Well, WrestleMania 19 was pretty good. It was Shawn Michaels against some Canadian [Jericho]. Yeah, I had my haircut real short. I'll never do that again. That was the worst haircut ever. [Michaels'] hair was pretty bad too. [Jericho] had the best hair. But that was a great match. But that, [and] WrestleMania 24, Flair and Shawn Michaels when Flair retired. [It was] certainly the biggest honor, but who else could they've used though? Right? It was very nice of them to let me do it. I think we were crying about a minute into the match." Robinson continued, "but the last one, the last match that was big was Shawn Michaels against The Undertaker [at] WrestleMania 26, I believe. That's where Shawn retired. So it's Flair and Shawn, Undertaker and Shawn, and [Jericho] and Shawn. Huh, it's Shawn. What a coincidence, so it means a lot that Shawn was in all three matches."
Additionally, Robinson named Daniel Bryan, Dolph Ziggler, Jericho, and Seth Rollins as some of his favorite wrestlers with whom to work.
"I don't have problems with really anybody, but some of the easier guys, I always loved working with Daniel Bryan. He was easy to work with. I don't know. He's just so laid back, so you don't worry about it if you do mess up that you're going to get chewed out or get in trouble. Dolph Ziggler, I love working with him. The energy that he has in the ring is just phenomenal. Of course, I like working with [Jericho]. Gosh, Seth Rollins, I can't wait for him to get back and work with him."
In addition to these topics, Robinson talked about the WWE Monday Night RAW match that resulted in Neville's recent ankle injury, blading, and more on this episode of Talk Is Jericho. Click here to check out the podcast. If you use any of the quotes from this article, please credit Talk Is Jericho with an H/T to Wrestling Inc. for the transcription.
Source: Talk Is Jericho